Edita Gruberova - The Art of Belcanto (2nd segment)

[Thriller94]

Enough about her AGE!!! Pavarotti was 70 and he was STILL singing those glorious high C's!!!

I must admit that Eb at the end was quite horrid... More of a scream... But, she has such an agile voice!

[phortion]

That's a respectable E flat for ANYBODY, let alone a 62 year-old woman!

[phortion]

Ah, those jowls! She reminds me of Angela Lansbury in her 'Murder She Wrote' days. But what a great singer, no argument there.

[edmanetti]

that's not Belcanto, that's the end of a big career in a  bad way...

[edmanetti]

There are so many bad notes, and the end of Lucrezia Borgia is really terrific...it's not a  high E's , please!

[thomastmwc]

@edmanetti what's wrong with your ears?

With all due respect

[MrSebtian]

Super!!!

[waldotube]

@1:45 ewa Podles????.. OMG, my favourites artist.. Love you Gruberova!!!!! your Lucia is amazing!

[angryjalapeno]

LOL, hahaha @ 1:06 It is clear this pianist has been around long enough to know what to say to singers.

[tklogan111809]

Donizetti wrote Era desso il figlio mio specifically to punish the first Lucrezia, Giuseppina Ronzi de Begnis. He didn't want flashy music to end the opera, not sung by a mother who had just poisoned her son by accident. He wrote dignified music for the end. Begnis refused, she wanted coloratura fireworks. So he gave her the most difficult piece he could come up with, with runs, trills, stacatti, low and high notes, thinking she would bail out. But she didn't and sang it brilliantly, we're told.

[urbaniak913]

I always love this beautiful voice. Piekny!!!!

[classicalgal14]

She is a legend! =)

[trumansf]

Fantastic voice!!! Genius!

[16thCenturyArt]

Good effort here, but having seen Sutherland's rendition in the title role of Lucrezia Borgia, Edita comes well behind in this characterization

[SlovakSlaw]

I love her art of singing. She is a typical Slovak woman: emotional, true, feminin. I wish our Editka a lot of joy and many nice performances.

[bosskml]

Hey, but you have to remember that when she film this she was 62 years old, that's why the final E-flat had that anoying vibrato :/

[htshoward]

I enjoyed the documentary, but I thought the Lucrezia Borgia in concert sounded bad. The high E-flat was atrocious. She is a great singer, but that was not her finest moment. Sorry. Flame me now, and I know you will lol.

[moghedien13]

@htshoward nah i agree. shes in her 60s and its bound to happen more often. it sounded very narrow compared to her other high notes. but when ur a living legend u can kinda do what you want hahaha.

[htshoward]

@moghedien13 lol exactly, and she certainly is! I love her M'odi ah M'odi from the end

[necrogoddess]

Increíble el final...

[CatalinaDM56]

HOT MESSSSS

[troppofiato]

Like Caballe and Fleming, Gruberova has gotten more and more mannered the more the career has advanced. All three divas were fabulous singers originally, though.

[alithecrab]

@troppofiato I think there's a strong argument that Fleming and Gruberova (and hey, maybe even Caballe, if her Gsätzli is anything to judge by) are still fabulous singers, but I do agree wholeheartedly, mannerisms abound.

[ternitamas]

"mischievous pleasure where other singers are out of breath!" I LOVE THAT LINE! hahaha That's why she's a diva!

[norisv]

Thanks for uploading these two videos!!!

[cleanears]

Technique! Amen.

[33blueberries]

@cleanears I hear that!!

[Toscavsky]

!!!Ella es una Diosa..una Diosa!!!

[kralik2002sg]

Truly and deservedly our primadonna assoluta

[Elisabetta611]

@kralik2002sg

She is not an Assoluta and never will be.

[alithecrab]

@Elisabetta611 What is your understanding of the term "assoluta"?

[Elisabetta611]

@alithecrab

The term stands for a singer who can sing dramatic, lyric and bel canto repertoire. She has never sung a dramatic, lyric or spinto role. Or did I miss her Isolde & Turandot, Leonora and Aida or her Desdemona, Tatyana, Mimi or Butterfly? *Snorts*

[alithecrab]

@Elisabetta611 I see. Could you please offer some examples, singers who you consider to be "prime donne assolute"?

[Elisabetta611]

@alithecrab

Callas. Lilli Lehmann. Ponselle.

[alithecrab]

@Elisabetta611 I don't know, I think it's quite fair to consider Gruberova the prima donna assoluta of the Bayerische Staatsoper, though in a different sense of the term than the one you describe.

[Elisabetta611]

@alithecrab

Unless you re-invent the word, no. It's like renaming a crystal into a diamond. Which is prettier? That's up to personal taste. But a diamond can never be a crystal & vice versa.

[alithecrab]

@Elisabetta611 Actually, a diamond *is* a crystal, carbon atoms in a crystalline structure...which nicely highlights one of the issues here: what do these words we're using really mean? Literally, "prima donna assoluta" means absolute first lady. What that means by way of interpretation is something else entirely. Your understanding of the 'term' (and I use the word loosely) you have stated above. I'd be willing to agree with a much wider definition, and I think many opera lovers would too.

[Elisabetta611]

She ain't exactly humble, is she? But sweet nonetheless.

[eradesso]

@Elisabetta611 well I have to say it wasn't so wise to mention the long breath spans considering how she ended up in a certain performance of Era Desso where she sounded like she had pneumonia..

[DiegoMartinazzoli]

@eradesso Ma di cosa stai parlando ancora??

[magicmonkichi]

@Elisabetta611

yea really wow. "if it doesn't have coloratura at the end i needn't sing it"....o.O

[Operalover77]

Show me another one like she is... There is nobody... Sorry, my dear Netrebko, you have not even 10 % of Gruberova...

[leoperarm]

agreed!

[NemanjaFan]

@Operalover77

I AGREED

[eradesso]

Mariella Devia. Exactly like her - considering both are over 60 and kicking asses of most young sopranos.

Let alone that silly Netrebko her name shouldn't even be brough close to those of Gruberova and Devia.

[Operalover77]

Absolutely right! Both Devia and Gruberova are operatic miracle! Bravi!

[DiegoMartinazzoli]

thank you so much for these two wonderful videos